Brendan Rodgers has shared how he feels about Kyogo Furuhashi at Celtic right now.
The Japanese striker has been struggling to recapture the goalscoring form that elevated him to icon status in the eyes of the Celtic support over the last two seasons.
But after netting his twelfth goal of the season against St Mirren on Sunday, Rodgers admits he is still delighted to have him as part of his squad.
Rodgers said [Daily Record], “As a striker, you do rely on your service. If you have two wingers on the side that want to run in behind, then you get those balls flashed across a lot more regular, and that’s when he’s at his best with those movements in behind the last line and players finding him with those passes.
“So, it’s a combination of things, but he’s still a brilliant striker, you can see that. And he always turns up in the big games as well.
“When you are playing so many games, you are never going to be right on the top of your game in every single game, but I am still so happy he is here, and he gives us that real penetration and threat.”
Kyogo is still Celtic’s best striker
The introduction of Adam Idah in January has certainly offered Brendan Rodgers a different option up front.
For too long Kyogo has looked isolated and cut off from the slow and patient build-up play. But against St Mirren on Sunday that changed.
For Kyogo’s opener, Idah kept the St Mirren centre-backs occupied which opened up space for the Japanese striker to drive home the opening goal in Paisley.
It was a truly instinctive finish and indicative of what the Celtic supporters had become used to over the past two seasons.
With twelve goals to his name this season, Kyogo is still a long way off from hitting the heights of the previous two under Ange Postecoglou.
But if he can continue to keep improving and Rodgers finds ways to get the best out of him, the Japanese striker could be pivotal in where the title ends up this season.
In other news, Pundit admits he got it completely wrong about two Celtic players this weekend
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
